What is Hiring for Fit?

You hire two people … both equally qualified, with similar experience … yet one person fulfills their expectations and the other just doesn’t make it. Why? That is the question that I have been working to answer for the last 20 years. It turns out the answer is not about skills or knowledge … the answer lies in a person’s behaviors … what I call ‘fit’

After hearing so many stories of leaders and managers having hiring mishaps, I decided to leave my retirement to provide a service, to industry and corporations, for selection and search services focused on hiring people that ‘fit’ — HiringForFit. The path that I find most productive, and rewarding, is to assist and guide clients in finding key personnel that ‘fit’ their organization, especially clients who realize the benefit of hiring based on the concept of a person’s behaviors … or their ‘fit’.

In our work over the last 20 years, we polled over 5000 hiring managers about our ‘hiring for fit’ philosophy. Each and every manager/leader polled agreed with our philosophy. Most executives had their own theory about hiring, which in most cases was a sound philosophy, yet most all were incomplete. Once we divulged our philosophy, with these managers, every person agreed with our observations. Often times these leaders resisted at first and needed further explanation, but then the light came on, they agreed that we have uncovered the real reasons for hiring … in essence, the core motivation for hiring.

The world of hiring executive-level leaders, and key staff, is changing, and the large search firm model isn’t working, because they are focused on hiring based on experience and skills not a person’s behaviors … or their fit. Hiring a person is no longer just hiring to to fill a job opening … it is now hiring to create a solution to a problem and to advance the organization. Since a person’s behaviors will ultimately dictate their overall success, understanding behaviors required a new approach to hire the right person, someone that ‘fits’.

Recent research is sustaining our concept of hiring for fit … in fact, the research shows that the probability of a successful hire increases by as much as 100% when the hiring process focuses on fit more than on experience.

Though, not a large consulting firm, we have the background and capabilities of those in the larger search and consulting operations. Because we are smaller, it means that we are nimble and can focus on doing the right things and doing things right – instead of worried about our commissions or billings.

I’m committed to ensuring that your hires are done right, while I remain consistent with the ideas, integrity and philosophy that got us here. I hope to have the opportunity to personally share our vision, approach and successes with you soon.